Safety attachment for railway-cars



. (No Model.)

11 M. SMITH. SAFETY ATTACHMENT FOR RAILWAY CARS.

No. 449,975. Patented Apr. 7, 1891.

WITNESSES:

VENTOR ATTORNEYS UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

ROBERT M. SMITH, OF CHEROKEE, IOWA.

SAFETY ATTACHMENT FOR RAILWAY-CARS.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 449,975, dated April '7, 1891.

A 11mm filed December 1-0, 1890.

To all whom it may concern.-

Be it known that 1, ROBERT M. SMITH, of Cherokee, in the county of Cherokee and State of Iowa, have invented a new and useful Improvement in Safety Attachments for Railway-Cars, of which the following is a specification.

This invention relates to a safety attaclr ment for railway-cars, and has for its object to provide a support or platform attached to the car, upon which an operator canstand while coupling cars, thereby preventing the operator being knocked down and injured, and a further object of my invention is to provide a guard for said platform which prevents the person standing thereon beingjolted or thrown therefrom.

It is also the objectof my invention to provide such a device that when not in use may be folded and occupyvery little additional space.

With these various objects in view my invention consists, essentially, of a folding platform supported from one end of the car below and to one side of the coupling devices, a folding guard secured thereto, and devices for checking and locking the platform and guard.

My invention consists, further, in certain details of construction and combination of parts, as will be more fully hereinafter described, and pointed out in the claims.

In the drawings forminga part of this specification, Figure 1 is a perspective view of my attachment as applied to a car-ready for use, and Fig. 2 is a side View of the same folded and locked out of the way.

Referring to the drawings, A indicates the end of an ordinary freight-car, and B the coupling device. A support O, consisting of the vertical side standards a and horizontal cross-bars 0', depends from the end of the car on one side of the coupling device, the lower end of said support extending nearly to the rail, and to the lower end of said support is pivoted a platform D, consisting of the side bars d and (1', end bars (1 and floor d the ends of the side bar (1 adjacent to the support being journaled in brackets 0 secured to the lower ends of the standards 0; but an ordinary hingejoint may be employed to connect the platform to the support. The lower end of the Serial No. 374,254. (No model.)

outer standard 0 is provided with a forwardlyprojecting foot E, upon which the outer end bar (Z rests when the platform is down, and to the inner end-of the side bar cZ is secured a rod F, the upper end of said rod passing across the platform and through an aperture in the inner standardc, and upon the end of this rod is secured a stop f and an elastic buffer f, said buffer being adapted to strike the rear side of the standard and prevent a shock, the foot E and rod F having the stop limiting the downward movement of the platform, whereby it is rigidly supported and adapted to maintain an operator upon the same while coupling or uncoupling the cars. To prevent him being thrown or jolted off the platform, I employ a guard Gr, consisting of a forward portion'g and side portion 9, the forward portion being attached to the forward side of the platform, and consists of the uprights g and horizontal cross-pieces g one of said crosspieces project-ing outwardly, as shown, the purpose of which will appear farther on. The forwardgnard may be hinged to the platform in any suitable manner, and in the drawings I have shown the side bars journaled in brackets secured to the uprights, said brackets being bifurcated and embracing the end bars between its members, the side bar passing through the end bars and bearings, thus pivotally connecting the parts. The side guard g consists of a series of bars g pivotally attached to the inner vertical standard 0 and the inner upright 9 thereby connecting the forward guard with the support and forming with the platform a complete attachment, adapted to hold an operator when desired, the said attachment being open at its outer side, whereby free access and exit can be had to and from the same. The platform is elevated only a few inches above the track and extends outwardly beyond the side of the same, whereby little or no risk or inconvenience is experienced in getting into or out of the same.

The attachment when not in use can be compactly folded, as shown in Fig. 2, whereby no unnecessary amount of room is taken and persons prevented riding in the same while the car is in motion, and to hold the platform and guard in its elevated position I employa lock or catch H, pivoted to the end of the car adapted to engage the top cross-piece g and maintain the guard in such position, which also holds the platform suspended. The extended cross-piece 9 serves as a handle to elevate and lower the guard.

In the drawings I have shown the inner standard and upright formed of angle-iron. This construction, however, is not essential, as any suitable construction may be employed.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim as new, and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is

1. The combination, with a depending support, of a platform hinged to the lower end of the same, an angular stop-iron attached to the end of support and adapted to be engaged by the pivotal end of the platform, and a red attached to the free end of the said platform, its upper end working through the support, and a cushioned stop arranged upon the inner or upper end of said box, substantially as shown and described.

2. A car having a platform located below the coupling devices and a guard secured to said platform, substantially as shown and de scribed.

3. A car having a folding platform located below the coupling devices and a folding guard secured to said folding platform, substantially as shown and described.

4:- Tne combination, with the end of a car, of a support depending therefrom on one side of the coupling devices, a platform secured to the lower end of the said support, a guard secured to the platform and support, said platform and guard being adapted to fold upon the support, substantially as shown and described.

5. The combination, with a folding platform located below and to one side of the coupling devices, of a folding guard secured to the platform and a lock adapted to engage the guard and hold the said guard and platform in an elevated position, substantially as shown and described.

G. The combination, with a folding platform, of a folding guard, stops to limit the downward movements of the platform and guard, and a lock adapted to engage the guard and hold the platform and guard in an elevated position, substantially as shown and described.

7. The combination, with a depending support, of a platform hinged to the lower end of the same, a forward guard portion hinged to the forward end of the platform, a side guard portion connecting the inner ends of the forward guard and supports, the stops for limiting the downward movement of theplatform, and the lock for holding the same elevated, substantially as shown and described.

ROBERT M. SMITH.

it-messes:

I'IAWVLEY ALLISON, LEoTA SMITH. 

